Morning tour of the ancient city of Konya, a religious city famed for its beautiful Seljuk architecture and its whirling dervishes with their religious dance. We will visit the Mevlana Museum which has devoted an entire room to Dervish instruments, manuscripts and artifacts. Also visit the recently restored Alaettin Mosque. Built in 1221, the mosque is a huge sprawling building. We will tour the mosque with our guide. Next, visit the Mausoleum of Mevlana Rumi, founder of the religious sect of the Whirling Dervishes. His sarcophagus is covered in velvet with gold embroidery, imparting a powerful impression upon the viewer. Also visit the Ìnce Minare, a museum of wood and stone carvings. Beautiful Arabic calligraphy embellishes the doorway of the building. We will also visit Karatay Müzesi, the Seljuk theological seminary which has a fabulous collection of tiles and ceramics with inscriptions from the Koran.

Lunch served en route to the moonscape villages of Cappadocia. The landscape of Cappadocia is the result of hot volcanic ash erupting and then hardening to form a soft porous stone called tuff. Wind and weather conditions have eroded some of the tuff, creating the hills and valleys that form the moon-like landscape of the region. To seek refuge from invading armies, Cappadocians literally went underground to build multi-levelled cities, churches and homes.

Tour the rock carved cities and surrealistic landscapes of Cappadocia. The earth is sculpted into fantastic shapes, rock cones, capped pinnacles and fretted ravines. We will visit some of the dozens of rock-carved churches that were painted with exquisite frescoes by early Christians more than a thousand years ago. Included in our visit is the Open Air Museum in Goreme Valley. Participants will have time to view the magnificent frescoes that adorn the churches in the museum village and reflect with our art historian on the artistic predecessors for these sophisticated images. Lunch at a small restaurant located in one of the "fairy chimneys". Visit Zelve, once a monastic retreat. We can include a visit to the amazing underground city of Kaymakli or Derinkuyu to enjoy the maze of tunnels and rooms. Late afternoon return to your hotel, stopping en route for a taste of "Simit", the Turkish bread rings. Dine at a cave restaurant with Turkish folk dancing and authentic music.

Depart early for Ankara, the capital of modern Turkey. Lunch at a renowned restaurant in Ankara, followed by a visit to the Museum of Anatolian Civilizations. The museum houses the finest collection of Hittite artifacts in the world. Participants will be led through this astonishing collection chronologically. If time permits, we can visit the Hisar Orkale, a citadel atop the city that offers a stunning view of Ankara. We will check-in to our hotel. Evening at your leisure.

Full-day Hittite art tour. We will visit Hattusas, capital of the Hittites. Hattusas, a site less frequented by tourists, is a walled city set on a dramatic hillside. Wonderful sculptures and bridges of the Hittite period adorn the city. We will visit Yazilikaya, known for its inscribed tablets written with cuneiform characters, telling historians that this was the holiest religious site for the Hittites. We will have lunch in town then return to Ankara for a free evening.